With a name like Beaverton, it seems appropriate that we start our story off with these little guys: Castor Canadensis, the North American Beaver. Thousands of these aquatic mammals lived and built dams that created lush environments for the many native inhabitants that called the Beaverton area their home.

The Atfalati branch of the Kalapuya Tribe were one of these inhabitants who benefited greatly from the beaver’s existence. In fact, they even gave this area the name Chakeipi, or “Place of the Beaver.”

Following the path pioneered by Lewis and Clark in 1804, the first modern day settlers to Beaverton made the difficult journey across the Oregon Trail in 1847. Like the Atfalati, these settlers referred to the place where they staked out their land claims as “Beaverdam Land.”